"Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home -- so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. [...] Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world." -- Eleanor Roosevelt

Today, December 10th, the International Human Rights Day occurs just as every year. It is an important day for human beings, all of them, and despite those rights being also known as fundamental rights of every human being, men, women, children, without making differentiations based on race, gender, language, religion ... unfortunately they are not yet recognized as they should. That 10th of December 1948, when the United Nations Assembly proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was drawn up by people with different and distant cultural backgrounds, we have been shown instead how we can be aware of what is right or wrong and how we can be united after a tragic and wearying event like World War II. This December 10th though adds something more; the Universal Declaration of Human Rights celebrates its 70th birthday. This merry event cheers us up a little and reminds us that this valuable document based on dignity, equality and respect towards and for all individuals, affects us closely and if we get to know it and appreciate it will empower us to assert our most important rights and values. The United Nations commemorates this day with numerous events around the world; from Europe to Africa, from the United States to Asia and back to South America. These events can be consulted on the website edited ad hoc by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights - OHCHR - which promotes the 'Stand up 4 Human Rights' campaign which, in this digitalized era, has been diligently furnished with the related tag #Standup4humanrights. In Italy this day will also be commemorated in 80 Italian cities by a torchlight procession organized by some of the major well known NGOs such as ActionAid, Amnesty International Italy, Caritas, EMERGENCY, Oxfam, which invite people to join the event which carries the title ‘Diritti a testa alta’, #Dirittiatestaalta, with the message that "today more than ever it is urgent to recover the principles of humanity and civil cohabitation that are the fundamentals of the Declaration and that the rhetoric of fear is trying to dismantle". The list of the citys' squares is available at this link. We therefore welcome the invitation that the organizations from all over the world pass on to us; let’s use this day to think about the immense power that the Declaration bestows on humanity above all in the valorization of dignity.